Customer Reviews

Thomas Merton's Gethsemani: Landscapes of Paradise

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mr. Hinkles evocative and enduring photographs and Ms. Weis' lyrical
text complement each other in support of Thomas Merton's enormous life. This is a precious text largely because it celebrates the courage to
simply be. One can read about Merton's contemplative life and very nearly be with him--in his light under the trees and sky and birds which
are fundamental and which were so essential to his routine, his daily
habit. Weis' text in particular is a carefully crafted essay--both probing and reverential. The book is an acheivement.

Thomas Merton's Gethsemani, Landscapes of Paradise by Monica Weis was, for me, a worthwhile read on a number of levels. Her premise was fascinating namely that Merton expanded his soul and grew progressively in his relationship with God by embracing not only the rules and rigors of monasticism but the mini-universe of the physical monastery, the land of Gethsemani itself. Weis details Merton's apprehension of this "paradise" with deceptive simplicity - the hills, rivers, storms, birds, smells and rhythms not only beckon him to deeper solititude but lead him into expanding realization, prayer and praise. And that for me, was the core accomplishment of the book. Weis never goes over the top. Her writing is clear and definite without strain, puffery or poetry. Rather the poetry of the book is her step by step detailing of the changes occuring within Merton himself as he allows Gethsemani - its physicality and metaphor - into his mind and heart. She traces the contours of a dynamic, poetic soul and the book shares the movement. Haley's black and white pictures of Gethsemani are simultaneously homey and mysterious; each invites a second look, a revaluation of your first response. His photography and Weis's premise go hand in hand. I remember one shot of a night sky - a black expanse spangled with hundreds of stars. It is sweeping and dramatic, far more majestic than those of woods, sheds and farm tools. Yet it locked perfectly with Weis's final chapters on Merton's (mystic) experience of a palpable unity; his sense that the world's religions have a common source and his full embrace of the METAPHOR he lived at Gethsemani. The book was my summer's morning read - a chapter a day with a cup of Starbuck's! A good way to start a day.

I'll admit. I bought this book because the photographer, Harry Hinkle, is my cousin's husband.BUT.. I found myself drawn past the incredible photography of both Merton Thomas and Harry to the moving and insightful writing. The sheer joy of life reflected in the words AND photographs of this book, make me want to look at everything with new eyes and heart.

Five stars for the stunning photography of Harry L. Hinkle, and the wonderful layout of this volume, with it's telling quotes from Thomas Merton's own nature writings. His nature oeuvre is substantial, and this volume fills a need. Unfortunately, the essay text by Monica Weis is unbalanced. One is left with a very misleading idea of what this man was really about. He was not just a Franciscan icon lost in the rapture of the forests. On one level, we do a disservice to this great man in constantly perpetuating this kind of mythology. Too many reverential, saccharine treatments have been printed already. Merton was so much more; and others, beginning with biographer Michael Mott, have brought real balanced treatment to the life of this extremely complex man.

In the Foreward, Brother Patrick Hart makes mention of pilgrimages to the the places of interest in the physical and spiritual odessey of Thomas Merton. Who are these dear people who feel the need to do precisely what Thomas Merton himself so often railed against? Please desist from attempting to create an Icon of this most complex of human beings.